February 22, 2019 Karl Bowman, W4CHX NC COML (NC0039) ARRL NC - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Karl Bowman, Tom Brown, and Greg Hauser February 22, 2019

 Karl Bowman, W4CHX  NC COML (NC0039)  ARRL NC Section Manager  Tom Brown, N4TAB  NC COML AHIMT Type III (NC0004)  NC SIEC NGO-AUXCOMM  NC AUXCOMM Coordinator  ARRL NC Section Emergency Coordinator  Greg Hauser, W3FIE  NC COML AHIMT Type III (NC0002)  Statewide Interoperability Coordinator (SWIC), NCDPS, NCEM

The information in this presentation is based on the personal observations and opinions of the authors and should not be considered as an official communication or statement of policy by the State of North Carolina, or the ARRL, the National Organization of Amateur Radio.

 Introductory comments  NC Division of Emergency Management (NCEM)  NC AUXCOMM  Training Ham-volunteers for ESF-2 in NC  Hurricane Florence, including role of NC AUXCOMM

 Service to their communities during the severe weather events of 2018.  Public service to your communities by supporting their non-emergency events.  And, thanks to MSP/EMHSD for coordinating EMAC, which provided valuable support to NC during the hurricane events!

 Auxiliary Communications (AUXCOMM) (organization-neutral term)  Auxiliary Communications (AUXCOMM) Training Workshop (OEC DHS training class for Hams)  “AUXCOMM groups” (NIMS ICS trained Hams)

Statistics on the NC Section • 21,157 licensed Hams in NC (12/18): – Novice 201 1 % – Technician 9,749 46 % – General 5,328 25 % – Advanced 1,223 6 % – Amateur Extra 4,656 22 % • 755,430 licensed Hams in US (12/18) • ARRL members (12/18): – North Carolina: 4,382 20.7 % – Total (US – Foreign): 148,227 19.6 % • #6 in Hams, #8 in ARRL members of 71 sections! (www.ah0a.org) (www.arrl.org )

 Becoming ARRL NC Section Manager (2014)  Building relationships  Taking ICS courses  Working on my COML Position Task Book  Certification, credentialing of NC COMLs  Being a specialty-trained veterinarian at NCSU  Being a NC Veterinary Response Corps member  Future goals

 Mission: improve the quality of life for North Carolinians by reducing crime and enhancing public safety  Law Enforcement  Adult Corrections  Juvenile Justice  Emergency Management

 Mission: Help North Carolinians prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters and emergencies.  Hazardous materials  Search and rescue  Risk management  Nuclear emergency preparedness  Homeland security  Disaster recovery  Emergency communications

 Emergency alerts to keep the public informed  Interoperability between first responders and agencies  Key personnel:  Greg Hauser, SWIC  24-hour Center Manager

Interoperability responsibilities include:  Public safety broadband  Standard operating procedures  Technology  Training and exercises  Grant programs  Tactical communications, inc. NC AUXCOMM  Statewide Interoperability Executive Committee

 Provides input to state and local agencies  Subject Matter Expert on interoperability  Point-of-Contact, leadership for all communications projects  Two (2) documents developed , updated:  SCIP  COMU Qualifications Guidebook

 Tom Brown N4TAB appointed ARRL NC Section Emergency Coordinator  Outstanding choice!  Why?  Understood NIMS ICS protocol  Recognized that public safety personnel adopted NIMS ICS protocol – federal and state law!  Recognized that Hams needed to be NIMS ICS trained  Understood where National Framework for Emergency Response was going  Understood its implications for Hams  Very few did!

(Page 1 of 2) Signed by Governor Easley on May 11, 2005

 Tom N4TAB and colleagues focused on:  Developing relationships with NCEM  Coaching Ham-volunteers for ESF-2 roles  Goal: Acceptance of Hams by public safety community  No small feat! Efforts are ongoing…

 ECs and above required to complete introductory (online) ICS courses  Soon: All Hams required to complete those courses  Presently:  >830 Hams have completed introductory ICS courses and are listed in NC AUXCOMM database  >89 Hams have completed the AUXCOMM course  Many have completed additional NIMS ICS training, including RADO, COMT, COML  10 AHIMT Type III COMLs from NC AUXCOMM

 Capable Hams appointed EC for their community:  They are “left alone”  Set up public service, emergency response strategies that work for them  Hybrid of ARES and NC AUXCOMM “best practices”  Recruit local hams and clubs  Set up training programs  Develop relationships with local public safety personnel  The way it should be: All emergencies start locally!

ARES - 2018 Public Service Events For the 12 months ending SEP 2018 as reported to me (note that some jurisdictions don't regularly report): ⚫ 364 Reported Public Service Events ⚫ 7938 Reported Public Service Hours Many NC PS Events are conducted under the ICS model PS Events are often conducted outside the ARES environment, by clubs and other entities. ARES is DOING FINE in North Carolina!!

 Training focused on digital communications  Western NC: portable “go - kits” are being used train Hams on Winlink (ham bands, SHARES)  NC AUXCOMM Digital Group:  Established in eastern NC for similar purposes  Now, statewide initiative  > 41 individuals participants have Winlink capability via Pactor, Winmor, ARDOP, Packet, VARA, and/or Telnet

 Curriculum overseen by Office of Emergency Communications, DHS (now: ECD, CISA, DHS)  Public safety personnel need these courses!  NC AUXCOMM has access to courses for Hams that need position-specific training.  There is an OEC course for Hams:  Auxiliary Communications (AUXCOMM) Training Course  TRG-AUXCOMM  Training on how to participate in ESF-2 Communications  Working on more AUXCOMM courses in NC!

 Charlotte Police and Fire Training Academy  2-4 days of intense training followed by EX  AUXCOMM, RADO, COMT, COML courses  Additional courses likely  Mid-summer, 2019  First Communications Coordinator (COMC) course in US was taught in Raleigh last month

 Meeting with groups of Hams interested in emergency communications  His message is focused on:  Building relationships between Hams and NCEM  Working on shared goals  Improved emergency and disaster communications  What could be better than that?

 Costliest, most devastating disaster in NC  Estimated cost of statewide damage is $17B  FEMA declared 51 counties eligible for Individual or Public Assistance  5,214 people rescued by air, sea, or land  1,067 animals rescued  21,272 people were sheltered on the night of September 15

 September 6: NCEM meteorologists confident TS Florence would impact eastern NC  September 7: Governor Cooper declares State of Emergency  Designated 20180907 Hurricane Florence  Next 20 days, ESF-2/COMU:  Activated plans  Deployed personnel and equipment  Received resources from regional, federal partners  Maintained communications for first responders and North Carolinians

 Integration of PSAPs into SERT operations  VIPER network performance (largest in US)  Mobilization, effectiveness of COMU at 4 locations  State EOC  Regional Coordination Centers (East, Central, West)  Integration of commercial carriers into ESF-2 operations  Performance of NC AUXCOMM program  Improvement of NC Air-to-Ground communication plan  Integration of federal partners into ESF-2 operations

 ESF-2 missions: 184  ESF-2/COMU personnel: 88  Cache radios issued: 850  911 calls statewide: 225,923  ESF-2 EMAC resources:  Type 1 SOW from AL, TN  Type 1 TERT teams from FL (2), GA, TN

 NC AUXCOMM resources pre-deployed at RCCs and local EOCs that made requests  NC AUXCOMM continues to be first COMU resource mobilized for widespread natural disasters  >40 NC AUXCOMM personnel deployed at SEOC, RCCs, local EOCs, or at home  Number of non-NC AUXCOMM monitoring and ready-to-assist is not known

 My thoughts and prayers to individuals, families, and communities  Many individuals and organizations contributed to disaster response  Emergency management efforts are ongoing  NC AUXCOMM from western NC deployed “Down East”  Extensive response by individual Hams and clubs to support their communities

Karl F. Bowman, DVM (call sign: W4CHX) NC COML (NC0039) ARRL NC Section Manager 5509 Shimer Farm Lane Raleigh, NC 27614-6301 w4chx@arrl.org